David Schuilenburg
Background * http://dave4council.net http://lh3.google.com/image/mark.rauterkus/RcOMGFHfMdI/AAAAAAAAADk/hd7WZgKxDks/s288/Dave-S.jpg * On the ballot in the 2007 general election for city council, district 1 as an Indie. * Pulled out of the 2007 D primary for city council. * Ran for the city council office in the past. Insights Statement about campaign in March, 2007 * http://rauterkus.blogspot.com/2007/03/dave-4-council-no-more-right-now.html Videos thumb|300px|right FAQ&As * GSPC Q&A from Schuilenburg in September 2007 Statements Hello fellow progressives! Thank you Amesh for bringing the article to everyone’s attention. As states the article, I have formally deposited my nomination papers to run for the District 1 City Council seat, this at the urging of many of my neighbors in Summer Hill, Observatory Hill, Perry Hill Top, and Troy Hill. Little did I know until recently that the efforts I have put forward in advancing community issues and attempting to maintain or improve the quality of life in the upper North Side has touch so many. Some of these actions include leading the fight against the relocation of a helicopter pad to our neighborhood, raising over 17,000$ for a family victim to a house fire, and co-organizing & moderating a debate between all the candidates running for the 20th District State Rep seat. All that said, I humbled & honored that so many think highly of my work & abilities, and with 8 years of experience as a Junior City Council member in Montreal, I here by accept to throw my hat in the ring, and attempt to bring the much needed change to city council that this city needs. The time for partisan politics and self-centered aspirations must end, and a new era, one of ideas and action, must begin if this city is to survive. Unlike other levels of government, Pittsburgh can no longer afford to sit idlely by while political games & positioning are played, and what is needed now are for people with ideas to step forward. I believe myself to be one of those people, and I will spend the next 5 weeks putting forward those ideas for all to see, and if elected, I will attempt to put those ideas into action. In closing, I invite you all, especially Progressives who live on the North Side, to visit my campaign website frequently for updates as those ideas will be posted there. In the mean time, like Tim, I will leave you with my nomination press release, and hopefully I will get to meet many of you at a Happy Hour if one is organized for the candidates of this specific race. Thanks & Respects Dave Press Release: North Side Candidate Announces ‘No Neighborhood Left Behind’ Commitment Offers A Portion Of Salary To Assist Community Groups Pittsburgh, PA FEB 2007 – Launching his campaign in a bid for Pittsburgh’s City Council District 1 seat, North Side Democratic candidate & 9-1-1 Dispatcher Dave Schuilenburg announces today the first in a series of commitments aimed at reducing the size & cost of local government, and raising much needed funds for neighborhood oriented initiatives. In contrast to a recent surge of sudden selective spending by Council Member Darlene Harris, Mr. Schuilenburg’s initiative is geared at assuring all neighborhood groups across the district, and the North Side as a whole, get a fair & equitable portion of non-profit funding available. Specifically, Mr. Schuilenburg’s plan entails the planning & organizing of a North Side Socio-Economic Summit as soon as possible, bringing together all the partners who will ultimately impact the direction of the North Side’s future, those being elected officials from all levels of government, non-profit advocacy groups, neighborhood groups & leaders, and prominent community activists. The summit would provide a public forum for all participants to openly discuss the issues affecting the various neighborhoods, to elaborate on possible solutions to those problems, and to prioritize how any potential public assistance can be brought to help the grassroots organizations in improving the quality of life in their respective neighborhoods. The key feature of this commitment is in the fact that once a list of priorities has been established & agreed to by all parties, any municipal non-profit spending on the part of Schuilenburg would be allotted in conjunction & accordance with the said plan, with exception to any unforeseen emergencies. Schuilenburg equates such a plan to an Urban Master Plan many cities have implemented, with exception that, in this case, the emphasis would be in empowering the grassroots neighborhood groups. “The benefits in an elaborated “planned public course of action”, which includes the input of all partners, is invaluable. Primarily, it takes the onus off of government, no matter what level, to perform the actual hard labor / physical action required in many of the solutions, and passes the responsibility of such on to the groups who have demonstrated that they are in a better position of delivering the type of results sought. Furthermore, in many cases, many of these groups already perform background leg work, including in many cases, locating specific & specialized sources of government funding for their projects. Often times, though, applications for such funding by neighborhood groups face many political hurdles, such as being ‘stalled’ in a legislative committee. With a public plan in place, however, elected officials can no longer cry “plausible deniability” when it comes to knowledge of the sources & access to funding; and more importantly, by allocating funding to groups in accordance to such minimizes potential skepticism where as it regards political favoring.” Whereas it concerns finding additional funds to help North Side neighborhood groups, as the sole challenger to Harris for Democratic Party’s Endorsement for the seat, Mr. Schuilenburg has offered to take a voluntary temporary salary cut to that of the national average of approximately $39,000 should he be elected. He has offered to do so until the city is out of State Oversight, and would redirect the difference to the neighborhood groups within his district during that time. “It is unfathomable for our elected officials to state in one voice that citizens must accept concessions in service, but in another accept pay raises while the city is, for all intents & purposes, in bankruptcy. More importantly while on one hand they are asking non-profits to give more, our elected officials on the other are not doing their share, often times imprudently spending money wastefully on items such as smoke eaters! The time has come for our leaders to put their wallets where their mouths are, and do their share in cutting their spending. It goes to the heart of their credibility, and to reestablishing trust the citizens should have in those they elect. As such, I challenge any other candidate in any other city council race, be it the incumbent or a challenger, to make the same temporary pay cut commitment.” Whereas it concerns responding to Ms Harris’ recent personal attack on him, upon where she stated that “he lacks understanding on how City Council works”, Mr. Schuilenburg refuses to be drawn into her petty political bickering games she brought with her from her days on the school board, and would prefer to stick to discussing the issues. “I would remind her that I was a city council member for 8 years in the Montreal Youth Council, and that the Post-Gazette last fall quoted me as being “the most knowledgeable of the candidates”. Should she be genuinely concerned about any potential lack of knowledge, however, I would not only accept but challenge her to a head-to-head debate anytime!”. DAVE SCHUILENBURG OFFICIALLY FILES FOR PITTSBURGH CITY COUNCIL DISTRICT 1 Sepetember 25th, 2006 Press Contact: (412) 589-1157, info@dave4council.net Pittsburgh, PA – Dave Schuilenburg, a community activist in the upper North Side neighborhood of Summer Hill, and a 9-1-1 Dispatcher, formally announced today he has officially submitted his nominations papers to run as an Independent Candidate for Pittsburgh City Council District 1, the seat vacated by then Council Member Luke Ravenstahl upon the untimely passing of Mayor Bob O’Connor earlier in the month. Dave’s political & community experience extends as far back as when he lived in Montreal, Qc where he sat as a Montreal Junior City Council Member for 8 years. Since immigrating to Pittsburgh, Dave has been very proactive in forwarding community issues; he successfully cordinated a Fire Victims Fund; and most recently, co-organizing & moderating a non-partisan debate in April between the candidates who were running for election to the District 20 State Representative Seat. If elected to Pittsburgh City Council, Dave, who is 33, intends to provide a voice for ordinary citizens, a voice for neighborhoods and communities, and an intelligent and informed voice to advocate for good government. Asked if the lack of name recognition would be a setback, Dave responded “One would usually assume so, however through the course of collecting my nomination signatures many residents recognized my recent accomplishments, and further, that my campaign would be one based on proposing ideas rather then running on a known name.” Some of the ideas Dave plans to expand upon during the course of the next 4 weeks include: Bringing necessary reforms to local government so as to do more with less; spurning socio-economical change throughout the North Side; and attempting to bridge the widening gap of trust citizens feel for their elected officials. On the future of the North Side, Dave adds; “Just as Bob always saw of Pittsburgh, I believe the North Side can be so much more. We are at a unique opportunity to replace some of the old guard in local politics, and make room for the next generation who, too, whom have many new & innovative ideas on how improve life throughout the area. As a council member, I would deeply consider some of those ideas, and attempt to implement them if it means the quality of services will be improved for the tax payer, and encourage young small families to move back to the area.” Fearless and tenacious when advocating for the public good, Dave’s interest in serving as District 1 Council Member is to move the city forward with much needed reforms, setting City Government back on a legacy track of good-government for future generations, helping the city grow, and assuring Council meets the needs and concerns of ordinary citizens. For more information on Dave’s experience and where he stands on the issues, one is invited to visit Dave’s campaign website at http://dave4council.net throughout the month. Statements Media Releases * No smoking-pr-Schuilenberg from October 2, 2006 Links Schuilenberg